We Believe in God…

First Article of Faith

We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost. – Articles of Faith 1:1

The First Article of Faith defines our belief in the Godhead. This Godhead is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. These three distinct individuals work together to “bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). What are the Latter-day Saint beliefs around these three individuals?

God the Father

Who is God? It’s a question that is still pondered by thousands today. For the Latter-day Saints, God is our Heavenly Father. He has a body of flesh and bones (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22) as revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith. The bible also supports this. In Exodus 33:11, we read that, “And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.” Jacob proclaimed, in Genesis 32:30, “And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”

When I was a boy, my grandmother would show me pictures of my dad when he was my age. He and I resemble each other almost as if we were twins. When asked to show the disciples the Father, Jesus responded, “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:9). We believe that Jesus was saying that his physical appearance is like that of the Father, and if you have seen Jesus, you have seen someone who looks like, if not exactly like, God the Father.

Why do I believe that God has a body? First, it’s logical. We read in Genesis 1:26: God says, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” In His “image,” doesn’t necessarily mean He has a body, but “likeness” can mean, and I believe it does, His physicality.

Second, I believe that God speaks to us through prophets today. Joseph Smith’s First Vision gave him an understanding of God’s corporeal nature. The prophet Amos tells us, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7). Jesus told His followers, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (Luke 11:9). Following that counsel, I have asked to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I have gotten the answer from the Holy Ghost, whom Jesus said, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).

Finally, I believe in a corporeal God because it makes logical sense. If He is our Father, then it is reasonable to assume He also has a body. I cannot look at His creations and His statements and think otherwise. He has a Son who came to this earth and obtained a body. That same Son has a body as a resurrected being. God, then, in my view, also has a body.

Jesus Christ, God the Son

Who is Jesus Christ? God has declared Him as His Only Begotten Son. To be a son is to be separate from your father. Christ is God’s Son; therefore He is a unique individual. He also has a body of flesh and bone (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22), the same as His Father.

Jesus Christ has a central role in the plan of God. That role is Savior and Redeemer. God knew that man would fall and then have to choose the right to become like God. However, by falling, man was susceptible to sin and choosing the wrong. These sins would prevent mankind from becoming like God.

This is where Jesus Christ comes in. His mission was to come to earth and take upon Himself the sins of the world. In the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross, Jesus fulfilled His part. We will revisit this in the Third Article of Faith. The knowledge that He is our Savior and Redeemer, and that He fulfills His role, is sufficient for our discussion.

Why do I believe that Jesus Christ has a body of flesh and bone? The story of Thomas in the New Testament testifies that He does. In John 20, we read about the Lord appearing to the Apostles. This is the first time that Thomas has seen the resurrected Lord. He infamously stated that he had to touch the prints of the nails in Jesus’s hands and feet before he would believe. Jesus said to him, “Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.” Then Thomas says, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:27-28). Thomas had a physical interaction with the resurrected Lord.

I stated earlier that I believe Joseph Smith to be a prophet. The Book of Mormon, translated by Joseph Smith, recounts Jesus visiting the people (Nephites) in the Americas. “And it came to pass that the multitude went forth, and thrust their hands into his side, and did feel the prints of the nails in his hands and in his feet; and this they did do, going forth one by one until they had all gone forth, and did see with their eyes and did feel with their hands, and did know of a surety and did bear record, that it was he, of whom it was written by the prophets, that should come” (3 Nephi 11:15). This also testifies of Christ’s body being of flesh and bone.

These two accounts show to me that Christ has a body of flesh and bone. What about His role as Savior and Redeemer? I believe the New Testament scriptures that describe what occurred in Gethsemane and on the Cross. I have put Jesus’s words-“ask, seek, and knock”-to the test for the answers. I know that the Holy Ghost has confirmed the truth of those words.

God the Holy Ghost

The third member of the Godhead is the Holy Ghost. “The Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us. A man may receive the Holy Ghost, and it may descend upon him and not tarry with him” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22-23).

As mentioned above, the Holy Ghost is the Comforter Jesus spoke of. He has been working since Adam and Eve. By His witness we know that God exists, Jesus is the Christ, and that God has a plan for us. His main job is to teach us the truth of all things.

God answers our prayers by many means. One of those is the Holy Ghost. Especially when we have questions that are more spiritual in nature. Recognizing the Holy Ghost is something that we must learn to do.

How do I know that the Holy Ghost is real? It is through experience. I’ve recounted my experience in college asking to know if the Book of Mormon is God’s word. It was through the Holy Ghost that I received my answer. My whole body tingled when that truth was revealed.

However, that whole body tingling isn’t the only way the Holy Ghost has revealed truth to me. I had to learn this as there were times where I asked a question and the answer came another way. An experience that is common is when I’m driving. I have usual routes that I travel when going to places I frequent. Every so often, I feel like I should take an alternate route. There is no obvious reason to do this, however, I know that it’s the Holy Ghost prompting me. I listen when that comes. I don’t know if anything would have happened had I gone the usual route. I do know that listening and following those promptings blesses me.

Conclusion

We believe in God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost. They are three unique individuals who work together to bring God’s work and glory to pass. Each one has a role in that plan that He fulfills perfectly. God and Christ have bodies of flesh and bone. The Holy Ghost does not. We don’t have an explanation as to why that’s necessary except for He “could not dwell in us.” Together they form the Godhead. They are all Gods, and work towards our immortality and eternal life.